The crypto market suffered a sharp correction in the last quarter of 2025, with total market capitalization plunging -23.7% to end at $3.0 trillion. This marked a -10.4% year-over-year decline, the crypto's first annual decline since 2022. While the quarter saw a brief all-time high at $4.4 trillion, a historic $19 billion liquidation event in October sent prices tumbling. Despite the price pullback, volatility pushed average daily trading volumes to an annual record of $161.8 billion, while the stablecoin sector climbed +48.9% annually to reach a record of $311.0 billion.
The year was characterized by a decoupling of traditional assets, with gold (+62.6%) and American stocks significantly outperforming Bitcoin (-6.4%). However, institutional adoption has deepened via Digital Asset Treasury Companies (DATCos), which have deployed at least $49.7 billion to acquire more than 5% of the total supply of BTC and ETH. Other positives include a +302.7% explosion in prediction market volumes and an all-time high of $86.2 trillion in annual perpetual trading volume on centralized exchanges, signaling that despite price contraction, market infrastructure and utility continues to grow.
Our full report Crypto Industry Annual Report 2025 covers everything from the crypto market landscape to Bitcoin and Ethereum analysis, diving deep into the decentralized finance ecosystems (Challenge) and non-fungible tokens (NFT), as well as reviewing the performance of centralized exchanges (CEX) and decentralized exchanges (DEX).
We've summarized the key points, but feel free to check out the full 60 slides below.
7 key points from CoinGecko's 2025 annual report on the crypto industry
- The total crypto market capitalization fell by -10.4% in 2025, ending the year at $3.0T
- The stablecoin market capitalization increased by +$102.1 billion (+48.9%) in 2025, reaching a new all-time high of $311.0 billion
- Gold led 2025, up +62.6%, while Bitcoin lagged, falling -6.4%, alongside the Dollar and Oil
- Digital Asset Treasury Companies spent at least $49.7B in 2025, with ~50.0% deployed in Q3 itself
- Prediction markets saw their volumes grow by +302.7% in 2025, reaching $63.5 billion
- Perpetual trading volume on centralized exchanges increased by +47.4% in 2025 to reach $86.2T, marking an all-time high
- Perpetual trading volume on decentralized exchanges grew by +346% in 2025, reaching a new all-time high of $6.7T
1. The total crypto market capitalization fell by -10.4% in 2025, ending the year at $3.0T
The total capitalization of the crypto market decreased -23.7% (-$946.0 billion) in Q4 to end 2025 at $3.0 trillion. This represents a decline of -10.4% year-over-year (YoY), marking the first year of decline for the crypto since 2022.
Q4 2025 started with strong momentum, with capitalization reaching a new all-time high of $4.4 trillion. However, this peak was brief as prices fell until the end of November, before fluctuating within a range until the end of the year. This decline was triggered by a historic $19 billion liquidation event on October 10, following the US announcement of 100% tariffs on China.
Furthermore, the average daily trading volume increased in Q4, reaching an annual record of $161.8 billion (+4.4% quarter-on-quarter). This was largely driven by the historic liquidation event and the resulting high volatility. However, once the market stabilized, the volume gradually declined.
2. The stablecoin market capitalization increased by +$102.1B (+48.9%) in 2025, reaching a new all-time high of $311B
The total capitalization of stablecoins climbed by +$6.3 billion to end Q4 2025 at a new high of $311.0 billion. In 2025, the stablecoin sector grew by +48.9%, a gain of $102.1 billion year-over-year (YoY).
The most significant change in the Top 5 in Q4 was the rapid deleveraging of USDe of Ethenawhose capitalization fell by -57.3% (-$8.4 billion) in mid-October. Its supply collapsed from nearly 15 billion to 6.3 billion following a de-listing on Binance, undermining investor confidence in high-yield closing strategies.
Furthermore, PayPal PYUSD became the fifth largest stablecoin, having increased by +48.4% (+1.2 billion) to reach 3.6 billion. He replaced the USD1 of World Liberty Financial in 5th place. This growth can be attributed to the launch of payments to creators on YouTube and a yield of around 4.25% through the Spark Savings Vault.
3. Gold led 2025, rising +62.6%, while Bitcoin lagged, falling -6.4%, along with the Dollar and Oil
Gold was the standout performer of 2025, climbing +62.6% over the year. It gained +11.4% in Q4 alone, driven by central bank accumulation and uncertainty linked to customs tariffs. US stocks followed closely, with the NASDAQ (+20.5%) and S&P 500 (+16.6%) buoyed by the persistent narrative around AI.
While commodities and stocks have thrived, Bitcoin (BTC) stagnated, falling -6.4% in 2025. The only assets that performed worse than BTC were the US dollar index (-10.0%), affected by rate cuts and political changes, and crude oil (-21.5%), facing global excess supply and record non-OPEC production.
4. Digital Asset Treasury projects spent at least $49.7N in 2025, with ~50.0% deployed in Q3
Digital Asset Treasury Companies (DATCos) have become major market players in 2025, deploying at least $49.7 billion during the year to acquire cryptocurrencies. Deployment peaked in Q3, which accounted for half of annual spending thanks to a wave of DATCos altcoin launches.
However, the pace of acquisitions slowed sharply in Q4 2025, falling to 5.8 billion, as the crypto market collapsed, causing DATCos' stock prices to fall. This led to the market-adjusted NAV (mNAV) of many DATCos falling below 1.0, forcing them to use funds to repurchase their shares rather than accumulate crypto.
As of January 1, 2026, DATCos collectively held $134.0 billion worth of crypto, an increase of +137.2% compared to $56.5 billion on January 1, 2025. They now hold over 1 million BTC and 6 million ETH, representing >5% of their respective total offerings.
5. Prediction markets saw their volumes grow by +302.7% in 2025, reaching $63.5 billion
Prediction markets saw their notional volume grow from 15.8 billion dollars in 2024 to 63.5 billion in 2025, an increase of +302.7%.
Polymarket started 2025 with a market share of 85.6% in Q1, but was overtaken by Kalshi in Q4. Kalshi held 39.6% in Q4, followed by Polymarket with 32.4%. Separately, Opinion, backed by Yzi Labs and built on BNB Chain, emerged in November to challenge the leaders. Its volume reached 7 billion in December, matching that of Kalshi, although current volumes may reflect airdrop farming activities.
6. Perpetual trading volume on centralized exchanges increased by +47.4% in 2025 to reach $86.2T, marking an all-time high
In Q4 2025, the top 10 perpetual centralized exchanges (Perp CEXes) recorded $21.2 trillion, down -12.0% from $24.0 trillion in Q3. In 2025, trading volume reached 86.2 trillion, an increase of +47.4% compared to 2024, marking an all-time high.
October 2025 was the second most active month by volume on record, after August 2025, as BTC reached its last ATH. On the other hand, December was the least active month of the year, with 5.3 billion in volume.
The relative market share between the top 10 Perp CEXes remained almost unchanged during the quarter and year. The only notable exception is the rise of MEXC in November and December, which exceeded OKX, Bybit And Bitget to take second place.
Just outside the Top 10, KuCoin accumulated significant volume in 2025, becoming the only Perp CEX outside the Top 10 to exceed $1 trillion.
7. Perpetual trading volume on decentralized exchanges increased by +346% in 2025, reaching a new all-time high of $6.7T
As of Q4 2025, the trading volume of the top 10 perpetual decentralized exchanges (Perp DEXes) increased by +80.8%, from 1.8 trillion in Q3 to 3.2 trillion in Q4. In 2025, the top 10 perp DEXes recorded 6.7 trillion, a monumental increase of +346% from 1.5 trillion in 2024. The Perp DEX:CEX ratio is now 7.8%, up from 2.5% a year ago.
The increase in trading volume was driven by incentives and airdrop farming on exchanges such as Lighter, Aster, edgeXGRVT and Paradex. Hyperliquid remained the most active perp DEX in 2025, although it was overtaken by Lighter in T4. Hyperliquid and Lighter are now among the top 10 largest perpetual exchanges by annual volume, with 2.9 trillion and 1.3 trillion in trading volume, respectively.
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